The government proposal has sparked a storm of objections from people on Anglesey

Nuclear waste from across the British Isles could potentially be shipped and stored on Anglesey as part of new plans unveiled by the Government.

But the resulting fallout from the proposals has already generated a storm of objections on the island, with one politician saying that residents should make every effort to stop it turning into a “nuclear waste depository”.

The UK Government’s Energy and Climate Change department is looking for communities to come forward and “volunteer themselves” in order to establish a new site from scratch, that would store nuclear waste from all over Britain.

And it is understood that Anglesey is one of the sites under consideration by the UK Government, with a public meeting set to take place to discuss the matter later this year.

Any communities that agree to the deal, have been promised “substantial” economical benefits.

But Anglesey’s Assembly Member, Rhun ap Iorwerth, says that residents across the island, must strongly reject any proposals to establish any such sites here.

He said:

“This is quite separate from arguments for and against nuclear power generation at Wylfa newydd. This is about the threat of using Anglesey as a nuclear waste depository. The Welsh Government says it has no opinion on this matter. Well, I have, and I’m sure Anglesey residents have, too. Ynys Mon must say a firm ‘no’, as Cumbria did.”

“It is important that we speak with one voice – Anglesey will not be used as a radioactive waste dump for the test of the UK. I will be attending the meeting later this year to help make sure that the voices of Anglesey residents are heard on this matter.”

The Welsh Government has stated that it is not in a position to make a statement unless any Welsh community offers itself forward.

While a spokeswoman for the Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) confirmed to the Mail that a white paper will be launched later this summer to discuss the plans on a UK-wide basis, in greater detail. She added:

“At the moment we are looking for interested communities to come forward and are not in a position to earmark any specific sites as of yet. Disposing of Nuclear Waste in a safe and secure manner is a national issue, and therefore can be located anywhere in England, Wales or Northern Ireland.”

Anglesey council Leader, councillor Ieuan Williams, said:

“This authority has never shown any interest in locating a nuclear waste disposal site on Anglesey and that view will not change.”

The Mail also contacted ‘CORWM’ who are arranging the meeting on behalf of the government, but nobody was available for comment.

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